KQED's Forum

Rotten Tomatoes, the site that rates movies according to how a tomato decomposes – from Certified Fresh to rotten – turns 25 this year. And its origin story isn’t only one of the dot-com boom: It began with Jackie Chan movies, a martial arts club and three UC Berkeley undergrads. The trio went on to found a website that changed the way we choose the movies we watch. We’ll talk with them about the Rotten Tomatoes’ beginnings and we’ll hear from you: How do you use Rotten Tomatoes? Does the tomatometer make or break whether you see a film?Guests:Senh Duong, creator and founding COO, Rotten TomatoesPatrick Lee, founding CEO, Rotten TomatoesStephen Wang, founding CTO, Rotten Tomatoes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When someone calls your cell phone are you filled with dread, or even anger? Is it better to call or leave a text? And how long should a voicemail be, if you leave one at all? As our relationships with our mobiles and each other evolve, so do the goalposts of communication norms. The meanings of emojis seem to change with the seasons, and generational conflict can ensue when a parent ends a text to their teen with a period. We’ll talk with experts about why you should text before you call and how to avoid sounding passive aggressive over DMs. And we’ll hear from you – what are your communication pet peeves?Guests:Heather Kelly, technology reporter, The Washington PostCarlos Cabrera-Lomeli, community engagement reporter, KQEDLee Humphreys, professor and chair, department of communication, Cornell University Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In his new book, “Fear is Just a Word,” Azam Ahmed chronicles the years-long journey of Miriam Rodriguez, who took it upon herself to find justice for her daughter after she was kidnapped in 2014 by one of the most violent gangs in Mexico. Rodriguez would eventually lead law enforcement to arrest nearly a dozen cartel members, doing much of the investigation and research herself, despite great risk to her and her family. Ahmed, a global investigative correspondent for the New York Times, shares that story with us, and explains how the cartels came to hold so much power in Mexico.Guests:Azam Ahmed, international investigative correspondent, The New York Times Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An estimated 80 percent of criminal defendants in state courts in the US are represented by public defenders, who typically have huge caseloads. And their clients often need more than just legal help, many are dealing with poverty, homelessness, mental illness and other challenges. Operating in Alameda County and other places around the country, the non-profit Partners for Justice supports the work of public defenders by helping to connect clients to wrap-around social services. Embedded in public defenders’ offices, PFJ’s specially-trained advocates also work with clients to tell their own life stories and put their alleged crimes in context. The approach is known as “holistic defense” and advocates say it lowers incarceration rates and helps defendants rebuild their lives. We’ll talk with PFJ’s founder and a client advocate about their work.Guests:Jamir Graham, advocate, Partners for JusticeEmily Galvin-Almanza, founder and co-executive director, Partners for Justice Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On October 3 the House of Representatives ousted California Congressman Kevin McCarthy as House Speaker. After the withdrawal of initial GOP nominee Steve Scalise, their next nominee, Jim Jordan, failed to receive a majority of votes in an election held Tuesday. The House leadership vacuum becomes increasingly problematic as President Biden continues to pledge U.S. support for Ukraine and Israel. We talk about the dysfunction in the House and how it might resolve.Guests:Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs, Princeton University - His most recent books include "Fault Lines: A History of the United States Since 1974" and "Burning Down the House: Newt Gingrich, the Fall of a Speaker, and the Rise of the New Republican Party"Lee Drutman, political scientist; author; senior fellow, Political Reform Program at New AmericaJoan Greve, senior political reporter, The Guardian US Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For more than 35 years, British comedian Eddie Izzard built a career as an openly trans woman, winning Emmy awards, acting for both film and TV and performing in one-woman shows on Broadway. Now, she’s juggling a campaign for a seat in Parliament while making stops in North America for her Remix Tour, which revisits some of her favorite comedy sets. Ahead of her San Francisco shows, we’ll talk with Izzard about getting into politics and what it means to “remix” her old comedy.Guests:Eddie Izzard, comedian; author. Izzard is currently running to be the Labour candidate for a seat in Parliament Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Contemporary efforts to undermine democracy, spread disinformation and subvert elections are not without precedent in American politics, according to Rachel Maddow, the longtime MSNBC host, author and podcast creator. Rather, they’ve got a “prequel,” a period of American history before and during World War II when an “ultra-right authoritarian movement, weirdly infatuated with foreign dictatorships” planned to attack government targets to sow chaos and ultimately overthrow President Franklin D. Roosevelt. We’ll talk to Maddow about what we can learn from the Americans who beat back the domestic authoritarians of the 1930s and 1940s. Her new book is “Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism.”The U.S. Supreme Court’s latest term is underway with another round of big cases to watch. The future of an entire federal agency – the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – is expected to be decided, along with cases about whether someone under a domestic violence restraining order can possess a gun, and the legality of the abortion medication mifepristone. We’ll look at the Court’s docket and what’s at stake with Ian Millhiser, senior correspondent at Vox who covers the Supreme Court.Guests:Rachel Maddow, author, "Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism"; host, "The Rachel Maddow Show" on MSNBC. Maddow's other books include “DRIFT: The Unmooring of American Military Power” and “Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on Earth”Ian Millhiser, senior correspondent, Vox - His books include "Injustices: The Supreme Court's History of Comforting the Comfortable and Afflicting the Afflicted" and "The Agenda: How a Republican Supreme Court is Reshaping America." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guests on this episode discuss the impact of chatbots and AI on higher education, covering topics such as personalized education, disinformation, cheating, and the importance of critical thinking. They explore regulating AI in assignments, the potential loss of critical thinking skills, and the need for AI literacy in students.

Literary translators are why we can read poems, novels and essays written in languages we don’t speak, exposing us to otherwise inaccessible ideas and worlds. But even though translators wrestle page by page, paragraph by paragraph, line by line, to convey meaning,humor and pathos, their names don’t always appear on book covers. And translators say their industry is mired in problems of inequitable pay, a lack of diversity and an undervaluing of heritage speakers. We’ll talk with a panel of literary translators about the joys and challenges of their work. Tell us: Have you ever attempted to translate a literary text? What did you notice? What’s your favorite work in translation?Guests:Bruna Dantas Lobato, translates from Portuguese; advocate for translators not working into their first language; novelist and author of the forthcoming novel, "Blue Light Hours" - she has just been longlisted for the National Book Award;Jennifer Croft, author, the forthcoming novel "The Extinction of Irena Rey"; translator for Polish Nobel Laureate Olga Tokarczuk; advocate for translatorsSoje, translates from Korean; poet; creator of Chogwa - which presents multiple translations of the same poem in each issue Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Slamming a bedroom door is one of the first signs a young person is entering puberty. Then come the physical changes, first periods, wet dreams, acne, mood swings and many other shifts. But, today’s young people are experiencing puberty in different ways than their parents’ generation. It starts sooner and lasts longer, making a complex stage of life even more challenging. The authors of a new book, “This is So Awkward: Modern Puberty Explained,” will join us to lay out how puberty has changed and how families can navigate this tricky time in kids’ lives.Guests:Cara Natterson, co-author, "This Is So Awkward: Modern Puberty Explained" - Natterson, a pediatrician and podcaster, is the author of ten books including the New York Times bestselling series "The Care and Keeping of You" and “Guy Stuff”Vanessa Kroll Bennett, co-author, "This is So Awkward: Modern Puberty Explained" - Bennett is co-host of the "Puberty Podcast" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices